Thursday 21 April 2011 18.37 EDT
First published on Thursday 21 April 2011 18.37 EDT

Judd Trump and Mark Williams adjourned with overnight leads in the first pair of best-of-25 frames second-round matches in the world championship, while sweeping wins for John Higgins and Mark Selby completed the first-round action.

The 21-year-old Trump, who defeated Neil Robertson, the defending champion, on the opening day here, faced a familiar problem for a giantkiller – providing a suitable encore – but goes into his middle session of three against Martin Gould with a 5-3 advantage. Williams, pursuing his third world title eight years on from his second, will resume 7-1 up on Jamie Cope, the result of only 88 minutes' play.

Trump arrived at 3-0 with a dashing break of 92 but Gould, runner-up in the Players Tour Championship in Dublin last month and up to a career high of 22nd in the rankings, recovered to 3-3 before the Bristol left-hander regained the lead with a break of 80 and added the last frame of the day.

Higgins disposed of Stephen Lee 10-5, making three centuries in setting up the 6-3 lead with which he resumed and another, 101, in improving to 8-3. Lee, who has beaten the triple world champion four times, albeit in 18 attempts, responded with a run of 101 and also administered a whitewash in the next frame but Higgins, not allowing this recovery to gather momentum, ran through the two remaining frames he needed with breaks of 74 and 81. Asked whether he considered Higgins the favourite for the title, Lee was emphatic: "Oh yes. He's scoring well, his safety's so good, he's got a great temperament. You've got to play well in all departments against John. If he gets into a groove he'll stamp all over you."

It is difficult to envisage the determined but pedestrian skills of Rory McLeod causing him serious problems over 25 frames but Higgins is not given to extravagant predictions. "A lot of players are capable of winning this," he said.

Selby, runner-up here four years ago and involved at the business end of almost every tournament this season without actually winning one, cruised to a 10-1 win over Jimmy Robertson, the 2009 English amateur champion, and will now face Stephen Hendry with a quarter-final place at stake.